i think br john is summing up pakistans madaaris from one meeting with whom i think is Mufti Rafi Usmani, which is unfair. i studied in a madrassah in pakistan and though i was an international student i nearly got kicked out for having a ssp sticker on the inside of a notebook. i ran around like a headless chicken for 4 days because my teacher took my name off the register. pakistans madaaris have 'zero tolerance' for joining islamic organisations let alone political.